Funny how the Republicans now criticize the new Speaker over the plane issue…when it was on their watch that ten BILLION dollars of taxpayer money has gone missing.

Time to end the hypocrisy (dare we call it “yellow journalism”?)…by recording the truth.

According to the White House…the Speaker had nothing to do with arranging for the plane, its size, its range or anything else.

CNN: “POSTED: 4:34 p.m. EST, February 8, 2007:”

“…negotiations over Pelosi’s transport have been conducted solely by the House sergeant-at-arms and the Pentagon, with no direct involvement by the speaker or her office — or the White House.” Tony Snow, White House Spokesman.

Since most of us who disagree with you are type-casted the way you, Rush, and others like you..for the record, I’m not for abortion, not for same-sex marriage, not for big government, not for drunken-sailor spending (like the kicked-out Republican majority just demonstrated with a thousand percent increase in earmarks), not for bragging about lowering taxes while hypocritically borrowing out of the back door from China and others in staggering amounts to cover spending.

Why don’t you spend time criticizing all of these things that are driving this country into mortgaging our children’s financial future for the next ten generations (not to mention strengthening those like China who would just as soon see us collapse and become a third world country and who with the money they are making off of us have beaten us to the punch in designing a satellite killer).

Why don’t all of you criticize equally, hold all elected officials to the same standard of accountability, standing for “by the people, for the people” first before“party”?

Finally, as for the missing ten billion…if every elected official that had anything to do with the unregulated dispersment of those funds in CASH (what were they thinking) had (a) their pay checks garnished and (b) had their pensions garnished until every single penny was returned to the American taxpayer…a debacle like this would never happen again.

This is such a non-issue, laced with the arsenic of hypocrisy. As most news stations have by now reported, the arrangement for the Speaker of the House to fly on a government plane was instituted, originally, for Dennis Hastert for security reasons after 9-11.

It was recommended by the Secret Service and the White House. And when it first happened, no Republican objected to the speaker being flown around on a military jet. And neither did any Democrat. Nor should they have.

The problem is that Speaker Pelosi needs a bigger plane to fly non-stop to her home district in San Francisco. This, for the geographically challenged, is because San Francisco is further from the east coast than Chicago.

And the negotiations for the larger plane were conducted by the House Sargeant at Arms, not Speaker Pelosi. It was the House Sargeant at Arms who was concern about the need for a larger jet that would not have to stop for refueling during cross country flights. And that too could be for security reasons.

I think when Tony Snow defends it, that should be the last word because he would be the last person to defend Democratic misdeeds.

>>Shaun Kenney said…It's a flying Lincoln Bedroom and a waste of taxpayer dollars. Stop over in Denver like everyone else. 4:37 PM<<

Perhaps…Shaun…your comments would be better addressed to the House Sargent At Arms (who actually made the arrangements for the plane…or haven’t you heard ??!!!

Also…if you are going to position yourself as a fiscal watchdog regarding the waste of taxayer dollars…why have you not commented about the missing ten billion dollars that the Republicans sent to Iraq…in cash…lost it…then replaced the missing taxpayer dollars with another ten billion of taxpayer dollars ???

Hmmm…Speaker Pelosi’s plane would have to be awfully fuel inefficient to rack up a ten billion dollar “waste of taxpayer dollars” like the Republican’s managed to do in just this one instance alone wouldn’t you say Shaun?

Perhaps instead always coming on with the same old stream of rancid partisan politics, huffing and puffing about a non-story such as Speaker Pelosi’s plane, you would better serve the nation by being “fair and balanced” (now there’s a concept) addressing issues and encouraging discussion about any elected official, regardless of party, that really does promote or participates in squandering taxpayer money.

So back to the first missing ten billion and replacement (second) ten billion taxpayer dollars…

Can we anticipate a ‘shame on you Republicans’ admonition for wasting twenty billion taxpayer dollars in the same format as your originating post (a.k.a. shame on Speaker Pelosi for not riding coach and stopping in Denver) ??